Bakery Review

Oct-Nov ’12

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EDITORIAL

Publisher cum Editor

Rajneesh Sharma

rajneeshhammer@gmail.com

Associate Editor

Swarnendu Biswas Resident Editor

Sharmila Chand (Delhi) Ashok Malkani (Mumbai) Feature Editor

Kanishka Gupta Sub-Editor

Tapapriya Lahiri Layout & Design

Hari Kumar V. Narender Kumar

Advertising Sales

Delhi: Debabrath Nath, Sudhir Pandey, Ashish Jha Mumbai: Rajesh Tupsakhare Subscription Sales

Dattaram Gangurde Director Sales

Sanjay Anand

Director Operations & Finance

Rajat Taneja

Editorial & Advertising Offices: Delhi:

Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 1202, Pragati Tower, 26, Rajindra Place, New Delhi-110008 Phone: 91-11-25854103 Telefax: 91-11-25854105 Mumbai:

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E-mail: hammerpublishers@vsnl.net © 2012 Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. No article can be reproduced in part or as whole without prior permission of the Publisher.

Bakery Review is a bi-monthly magazine, printed and published by Rajneesh Sharma on behalf of Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 1202, Pragati Tower, 26 Rajindra Place, New Delhi. Printed at Swan Press, B-71, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase-II, New Delhi-110 028.

Annual Subscription rate within India is Rs. 450 and overseas US $110, for surface mail. Single issue is available for Rs. 90 in India and US $25 overseas. Cheques are payable to Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. Editorial Policy : Editorial emphasis in Bakery Review magazine is on

educational & informational material specifically designed to assist those responsible for managing Bakery & Confectionery business.

Articles are welcome and will be published on the sole discretion of the editor.

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Chocolates have garnered global popularity in the last century, and now in the nascent stage of the twenty-first century, the popularity of chocolates is growing in India, especially in urban India, and chocolates are emerging as preferred gift items for Valentine’s Day and birthdays in urban Indian homes. Chocolates are also replacing traditional mithais as gift items even for traditional festivities like Diwali, Holi, and Rakhi. That is not all.

Chocolates are emerging as corporate gifts, with the objective of facilitating business and/or HR. Moreover, now people are not only gifting and indulging regular chocolate offerings from Cadbury and Nestle, but are also going for designer chocolates, where you can translate your imagination or fascination or even your fantasies into dark edible delights. There is no denying the fact that the chocolate market is maturing in India, and has graduated from childhood to adolescent stage.

Besides the tradition of gifting sweets on occasions, the other reasons for the increasing popularity of chocolates in the recent years can be attributed to the increase in disposable incomes in select pockets of Indian society, the lifestyle changes in urban India, and the influence of globalisation in the urban Indian milieu.

However, all said and done, chocolates are still predominantly an urban consumption, and neither does the tastes of an average Indian chocolate consumer towards chocolates have become refined to the level of the tastes of an average consumer of chocolates in the developed countries, in the west. The consciousness and the market for chocolates are increasing in India, though they are both at a nascent stage as compared to the developed countries in the west.

This means that in the backdrop of a favourable socio-economic climate for the chocolate business, the potential of these dark delights in urban India is very bright indeed. We have discussed various facets of the evolving chocolate culture in urban India in our Cover Story, along with exploration of the possible future trends that the Indian chocolate market is expected to assume in the next decade or so.

The dairy industry in India, despite beset with various challenges is now being flooded with a range of healthy dairy products from various leading players in the dairy industry.

Mother Dairy, Nestle, Amul and other major players have their new-age healthy dairy products adorning the shelves of supermarkets. In India, the probiotic segment of the dairy industry is growing at a steady pace, and is brimming with great potential. However, these products seem to be primarily directed to the higher echelons of the society and also to the upper middle class consumers of urban India, who are able to pay for them. For poor people, highly affordable and yet highly healthy dairy products are still a long way off from the market realties. These factors deserve urgent attention, for dairy is the edifice of bakery industry. In this regard, we have attempted to discuss the impediments and developments in the Indian dairy industry in our Business Story.

Besides these relevant issues, we have covered various other topics of interest to the bakery industry through our regular and additional sections, which we hope would facilitate to keep our readers absorbed between the covers. I hereby sign off while wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year. Both these celebratory occasions have additional reasons to celebrate for the bakery industry in particular.

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16 COVER STORY Celebrating Chocolate Culture

20 BUSINESS Notes in the Dairy

DEPARTMENTS 04 Events 08 News Scan 25 Focus

28 PRODUCT Baguettes for Bakeries

30 Dairy 34 Product Preview 36 Interview

32 OPERATIONS Points to Ponder for Start-up Bakeries Cover Pix: Dobla BV

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Oishii Japan — Projecting Japan’s F&B Industry to the ASEAN Market

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i s h i i Ja p a n e n j o y e d a successful debut as Japanese food exporters targetted the growing Singapore and ASEAN market. Held from 1st to 3rd November at Sands Expo and Convention Centre, the show attracted over 5,000 participants from more than 20 countries.

Koji Nanbu, the Deputy Director of Export Promotion Division in Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), revealed that ASEAN has now emerged as an important market for Japanese food exports. He added, “Singapore, with its strategic location, would be a gateway for Japanese companies to expand into ASEAN.” Nanbu also noted that Oishii Japan had the largest concentration of Japanese companies in any food-related exhibition in this region. Oishii Japan occupied over 4,000 square metres and had 220 exhibiting companies from 27 prefectures. Some 90 per cent of the companies were from Japan.

MAFF, as a strong supporting organisation of Oishii Japan, took up the largest pavilion of 150 square metres at the show.

Masanao Nishida, the Director of Oishii Japan, said: “The show was created as an answer to the growing popularity of Japanese food and drinks among Asians. It is an excellent platform for ASEAN buyers to explore and source from a rich mix of quality Japanese F&B products and kitchen equipment, many of which were launched outside of Japan for the first time.

Business Objectives of Participants Fulfilled The first edition of Oishii Japan featured a wide variety of Japanese products such as

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meat, seafood, sake and shochu, noodles, sauces, condiments and confectionery as well as a wide range of cutlery, utensils, table ware and innovative kitchen equipment. The showcase was a useful sourcing platform for F&B professionals, Chefs, restaurateurs, hoteliers, importers and distributors, retailers as well as new business owners and investors in the food business. Positive feedback from trade visitors attests to Oishii Japan being a dedicated showcase of an exciting variety of Japanese F&B products and related services. A delighted Phakkawatphinyo Bapphabun, a hosted buyer from Thailand, said, “My visit to Oishii Japan has been very productive. I placed orders with several suppliers of meat, seafood and processed food from various prefectures.

I am looking forward to source for more consumer packaged products in my next visit.”

Truong Khanh Hoa, a hosted buyer from Vietnam, commented, “This is a good place to procure authentic Japanese F&B products. I have met many new suppliers with interesting products, which have great potential to be imported into Vietnam.”

Exhibitors were pleased with the show as they had met good quality buyers from Singapore and the region. Hiroki Yamanaka, Chief Executive Staff, Market Development Division, Sakai City Industrial Promotion Centre, which displayed a range of exquisite kitchen knives used for Japanese cooking, asserted, “This was our first time exhibiting outside of Japan and New York, and we are surprised that the people here are so interested in Japanese food and sake. We met about 30 potential distributors and we will be following up with them. Many

Chefs also came to look at our knives. We sold a number of knives, with the most expensive priced at $12,000. We featured five manufacturers for this show. Next year, we will bring more participants.”

Katsuhiko Chinzei, who is in charge of exports at Rumi Japan, a fish processing company, met more than 30 potential buyers. “Overall, we are very satisfied with Oishii Japan,” he articulated. “We wanted Singapore to know more about sake, especially Niigata sake,” affirmed a representative of Niigata Sake Association, which had 19 breweries taking part. Having met with many prospective distributors, the breweries were happy with the turnout of the show.

A Culinary Haven Members of the public who visited the show on Saturday (November 3) were also generally delighted with the variety of exhibits and tastings. It was an opportunity to sample premium Japanese food, sake and shochu as well as to purchase products, which are not available in Singapore yet.

Highlights of the Show Included: • ‘Live’ Japanese food demonstrations by Fumikazu Ohnuki, the Executive Sous Chef of celebrity restaurant Hide Yamamoto and Akihiro Maetomo, the Executive Chef of Chikuyotei Singapore.

• Appreciation workshops on Japanese sake, shochu and awamori.

• Product presentations on Japanese rice, kelp and other prefecture specialities.

• Udon discoveries for kids; an udonmaking workshop for children between 10 to 12 years old.

• Ramen and udon-making demonstrations and free tastings.

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E V E N TS ’ C A L E N D E R Gulfood 2013 25-28 February 2013 Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre, Dubai www.gulfood.com

In 2013 SIGEP Will be Held Together with AB.TECH Expo R

imini Fiera and Consorzio SIPAN have decided to organise together SIGEP and AB.TECH EXPO during 19th - 23rd January 2013. Now experts of the bakery supply chain will have a complete overview of trends and innovation in the bakery sector thanks to the fact that after every three years SIGEP, the international exhibition for the artisan production of gelato, confectionery, pastry and bakery, and AB.TECH EXPO, the international exhibition of technology and products for bakery, pastry and confectionery, will be held together. The events will be held in Rimini Fiera, Italy. The spotlight will be on unique sectors such as gelato, coffee and pastry at SIGEP, as well as on the best in confectionery and bakery at AB.TECH EXPO. The exhibition in 2013 will be a huge melting pot, geared to become an event with a truly international profile, which is expected to replicate or even overshadow the success of its last edition.

After six editions of SIGEP Bread Cup, this year, SIGEP has decided to bring together the five winning nations in a great show of international bread baking. Bakers from Italy, Germany, Israel, United States and Hungary will be the key players of the GOLDEN BREAD CUP, an event realised with the collaboration of Club Arti e Mestieri. Each day will feature a nation, which will illustrate its recipes to colleagues and Italian and international visitors at AB.TECH EXPO and SIGEP. The recipes will be of the traditional breads of each country and of health bread that is generally innovative and connected with new eating trends, as well as of cakes.

Production techniques will also be covered, ensuring coverage from a professional training point of view. Besides that, under the banner of art and sculpture, the ex-winners will be asked to bring artistic bread works to be showcased in personal displays. At the end, a panel of technical judges and one made up of members of the public (at the expo and on Facebook) will nominate the absolute winner.

In collaboration with Richemont Club Italia, AB.TECH EXPO and SIGEP will propose bakery events. Four days will be entirely dedicated to bread baking. They include The bread of the future on 19th, Bread from home on 20th, and The fragrance of bread on 21st and 22nd of the September.

Pastry will also be in the spotlight again. On 19th and 20th, there will be the Junior Pastry World Cup, the biennial competition reserved for under-23 contestants. Ten nations are taking part: Australia, Brazil, France, England, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and Italy. The theme of the contest is ‘The circus of the future.’ Each team will be represented by two Pastry Chefs, accompanied by their trainer, who will be part of the international panel of judges.

International attention well also be garnered at THE STAR OF SUGAR, the international contest reserved for the great professionals of sugar work in the pastry world; a refined technique in which the French school is top, but eastern countries are also doing extraordinarily well. With the theme ´The clown girl´, on 19th about twenty great Pastry Chefs will assemble a sculpture each in sugar inside a showcase, a very difficult technical test that will be judged by the SIGEP international panel of judges chaired by Stephan Klein. A prize of 5,000 Euros is at stake. The spectacular artistic contest will highlight perfection, and maniacal care to details. The sculptures will remain on display until the end of the expo.

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Aahar 2013 14-18 March 2013 Pragati Maidan, New Delhi www.aaharinternationalfair.com HOTELEX 2013 1-3 April 2013 Shanghai New International Exhibition Center, Shanghai,China www.hotelex.cn SIAL China 2013 7-9 May 2013 Shanghai New International Exhibition Center, Shanghai, China www.sialchina.com HOFEX 2013 7-10 May 2013 Hongkong Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong www.hofex.com NRA Show 2013 18-21 May 2013 McCormick Place, Chicago, US www.restaurant.org Thaifex- World of Food ASIA 2013 22-26 May 2013 Impact challenger, Thailand www.worldoffoodasia.com FISPAL FOOD SERVICE 25-28 June 2013 Expo Centre, Sao Paulo, Brazil www.fispalfoodservice.com.br TRAFS 2013 25-28 July 2013 Hall 103, Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC), Bangkok www.thailandhoreca.com Hong Kong International Tea Fair 15-17 August 2013 Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center, Hongkong www.hkteafair.com

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BAKERY REVIEW

Barista Lavazza Blends Café Culture With Fashion Barista Lavazza has launched a new precedence by merging the elements of café and fashion industry. The coffee chain, known for its innovative marketing and thematic campaigns throughout the year, has recently tied up with the renowned fashion designer Rina Dhaka to infuse a sense of novelty into its menu, its F&B offerings, and all other aspects of its cafes. These new elements have been introduced in all the cafes of Barista Lavazza, spread across the country. This association, between a café chain and a veteran fashion designer, is perhaps the first of its kind in the history of café culture in India.

Rina has drawn inspiration from from one of the most prominent fashion capitals of the world, Milan, to create Milana Collezioni — a tour de force, thematic collection of F&B items. By redesigning the uniform of the Barista Lavazza cafes and their store accessories, she has whipped up a novel image of the Barista Lavazza cafés, all over the country. The designer has also given her signature touch to the menu which is now being presented in the form of a catalogue, as well as the nomenclature of the newly introduced F&B products and much more. The new menu is divided into four segments — Nuova Collezione, Collezione Coffee, Collezione Bites and Collezione Desserts. The special thematic menu, which has drawn inspiration from fashion, has several new food and beverage items added to the list of aromatic and delectable offerings.

R. Shivshankar, the Director South Asia of Lavazza, said, “ Our association with Rina Dhaka to launch this year’s thematic menu will see the reach and influence of fashion extending to our patrons. Our aim is to ensure that each consumer witnesses the international quality and experience that Barista Lavazza offers, which is also intrinsic to its Italian heritage.”

Costa Coffee Brewing New Winter Menu Costa Coffee has introduced a range of indulgent beverages for the festive period, leading up to Christmas and New Year. With a tagline, ‘It’s the season to Costa’, the new range includes luxuriant beverages that are sure to bring cheer and add to the festive spirit. The three international products launched across stores in the cities are Cinnamon Cream Cappuccino — rich aromatic coffee topped with swirls of whipped cream and dusting of cinnamon spice, Toffee Nut Latte — toffee flavoured coffee mixed with smooth milk and topped with a layer of cream, toffee sauce and nut sprinkles, and Black Forest Hot Chocolate — decadent berry flavoured hot chocolate topped with cream, chocolate chips, fruit sauce, and chocolate mousse. Adding to these tempting line up of sinful desserts is this latest offering from Costa Coffee, the Chocolate Mousse & Banana Cake; a dense banana sponge layered between smooth chocolate mousses and topped with rich chocolate truffle. These offerings are available/will be available across all Costa Coffee outlets in India, throughout November and December.

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Anjum’s Amiable Art of Tea Making The recently unveiled Fairmont Jaipur — the property showcasing the classic royal legacy of Rajputs in terms of hospitality and décor, is exuding royal flavour in every corner of the property. Fairmont Jaipur’s lobby lounge Anjum is no exception to this. The aura of royalty at Anjum is also extended through its wonderful selection of teas.

Here it deserves a mention that all the Fairmont properties across the globe celebrates the fine art of tea drinking with an unrivalled selection of authentic, high quality teas from around the world. With a variety of single origin first flush leaf teas of both black and white varieties, as well as teas infused with herbs such as basil, lemongrass and mint, Anjum is also offering an authentically local twist to the long-standing Fairmont tradition of afternoon teas. Anjum serves the tea with a ‘Sugar Charlie,’ also known as tea timers.

Anjum offers a selection of delightful brews. ‘Digestif ’ — a blend of lemon balm, peppermint, anise, chamomile, lemongrass, orange peel and papaya cleanses the digestive system. Similarly, to energise the senses, Anjum serves a robust tea(aptly named as ‘Energy’) blended with yerba mate, spearmint, lemongrass, ginkgo and ginseng. ‘Tea for Tranquility’ has soothing and restful components like chamomile, rooibos, anise, blackberry leaves, stevia and many more in abundance.

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Given the popularity of tea and coffee to Indian gastronomic culture, elements of Indian fare obviously take centerstage at Anjum. The live Masala Chai’station offering the quintessential Adrak Wali Chai’and the famed ‘Meter Coffee’ — an anecdote related to the distance between the pouring and receiving in cup — can give Indian tea and coffee lovers lots of joyous moments. High ceilings, ornate hand-painted murals and open spaces make Anjum the ideal extension of the hotel’s lobby.

MTR Launches Healthy Breakfast Mixes MTR Foods Pvt. Ltd, with 31.6 percent market share in the breakfast mixes segment, has launched MTR Multigrain Breakfast Mixes, a delicious new range of breakfast mixes, which blends the goodness of grains like oats, ragi, jawar, etc. in some of India’s most loved foods, idli and dosa. The new range consists of four new products; Multigrain Dosa, Oats Idli, RagiRavaIdli and RagiDosa. The four products—Multigrain Dosa, Oats Idli, RagiDosa & Ragi RavaIdli will be available at all leading stores across India, at Rs.40 for 200gm and Rs.80 for 500gm in convenient to use packs. This innovative range of multigrain breakfast mixes were rigourously tested with the consumers across key cities to arrive at products that are a perfect balance between health and taste without any compromise on convenience.

These products can be prepared in just 12-15 minutes.

MTR has always been an innovator in the Indian breakfast space with products like RavaIdli. The launch of these products is based on important consumer insights; housewives told MTR that they were always looking to improve the nutrition of their family’s breakfast and while there were many western healthy breakfast options available, there was nothing in foods familiar to them. Sanjay Sharma, the Chief Executive Officer of MTR Foods Private Limited stated, “There is a trend emerging in India of consumers moving towards new-age grains like oats, jawar, etc. We are the first movers in the Indian breakfast space by introducing a range of Indian breakfast products which blend the goodness of healthy grains like oats in them. MTR has come up with the perfect blend so consumers don’t have to worry how to use these grains.’

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Take a Rite Bite with Max Protein Bar Naturell India Pvt. Ltd., the healthy lifestyle company behind Rite Bite, has introduced the protein packed and energy enriched Max Protein Bar. Max Protein Bar from Rite Bite is formulated with the help of nutritional experts. Serving the right combination of proteins, nutrition and taste, Max Protein Bars are available in three flavours — choco slim, choco fudge and honey lemon. Max Protein Bar is loaded with 20gm protein, 5gm fiber, 21 vitamins and minerals, electrolytes, omega 3, amino acid, L-Glut amine & lots more beneficial attributes. Max Protein Bar primarily acts as a mini meal and is expected to bring healthy nutrients to the snacking habits of many busy urban people, who often do not get the time to eat rightly.

Vijay Uttarwar, the CEO, Naturell India Pvt. Ltd. said, “Our extensive research has pointed out that urban people are always on the look out for healthy snacking options. Especially after all the binge eating during the festive season, this product will definitely provide some respite. Statistics has also revealed that gym memberships increase and people start watching what they eat after indulging in the Diwali delicacies. Hence we thought of introducing Max Protein Bar at this time of the year and facilitate our patrons on losing those extra inches, without having to look any further for healthy meal options.”

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BAKERY REVIEW

Godskitchen — An Impetus to Organised Hospitality Solutions The hospitality industry in India is continually evolving, while catering to the diverse and ever changing consumer and market needs. For most of the last decade, the Indian hospitality sector has seen a number of players attempting

to bring together the highly disparate sector under one roof.

Efforts to present a galore of renowned hospitality brands in India under one roof seem to have finally paid off with the recent opening of Godskitchen in Mumbai.

Godskitchen is perhaps Mumbai’s first consolidated showroom for major hospitality brands. Godskitchen is managed by Fortune Houseware Pvt. Ltd. The company, which is a leading supplier of international brands, will cater to the needs of restaurants, hotels, caterers, schools, hospitals and corporates. Reflecting the company’s vision and goal, Godskitchen launched its maiden showroom with a host of well-known international and national brands such as Arcoroc, Luminarc, Brabantia, Ocean, Tramontina, Victorinox, East, Probbax, Cambro, Fortune Steel, FnS, etc.

“The inauguration of Godskitchen in Mumbai is the manifestation of our conception to give the hospitality sector in India a boost towards becoming more organised,” said Akhil Chopra, the Director, Godskitchen. “With the opening up of FDI in India, we have no doubt this is the right time for our debut. We look forward to becoming the ultimate one-stop-solution house for every hospitality need,” he added.

Godskitchen aims to provide a one-stop shopping experience with major product categories like crockery, cutlery, kitchen tools, kitchen utensils, kitchen equipment, glassware, barware, storage goods, housekeeping products, with styles ranging from present day to transitional and conventional. An astonishing set of everyday and formal merchandise at a variety of price points is available at Godskitchen, which is expected to address the needs and expectations of today’s hospitality buyers.

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Leonidas — Belgium Chocolate Boutique at Santacruz Following the overwhelming response of its first store in Mumbai, Leonidas — the renowned Belgium-based chocolate company — has spread its wings by announcing the launch of its second store in Mumbai’s suburb Santacruz, West. The store is centrally located in the posh and brisk surroundings, which is ideal for targeting its niche clientele.

Leonidas has entered the Indian market in the month of October, in 2007. Premium Pralines joined hands with the largest Belgian chocolatier, Confiserie Leonidas S.A. /N.V., to bring the brand ‘Leonidas’ to India, thereby giving India its first fresh Belgian chocolate boutique.

On the occasion of this new launch, Darshit Shah, the Managing Director, Leonidas Fresh Belgian Chocolates Premium Pralines Pvt. Ltd. said, “The chocolate Industry is growing at a rate of approximately 12 percent to 14 percent in India. The chocolates & confectionary industry in India is both organised as well as fragmented. Being positioned as Belgium chocolates, Leonidas will facilitate the consumers in Santacruz with a wide range of chocolates, hampers,

kids’ hampers and much more. The store, opened at a prime location, is spread across 420 sq ft.” He also added that “The company is envisaging to venture into different luxury avenues for expansion. The company believes in providing luxurious products of best quality to the Indian consumers.”

Pistachio Flavour at Red Mango More often than not festivities in India are characterised by piling of calories by way of uncontrolled snacking. This prevailing tendency is however, thankfully countered by the evolving trend of healthy snacking options. Red Mango, the renowned frozen yogurt and smoothie brand, is also playing a role in contributing to this evolving trend, through its healthy dessert options. It has recently introduced Pistachio flavour frozen yogurt in India.

All the five outlets of Red Mango across Delhi-NCR will have this Pistachio flavour frozen yogurt.

Red Mango’s Pistachio flavour frozen yogurt is characterised by all the natural goodness of the wonder nut and adds on to the taste aspect as well with its divine creation.

Pistachios are known for reducing the levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL cholesterol) while increasing the antioxidant levels in human body. Research has also pointed out that consuming unsalted, dry roasted pistachios prevents any addition of unwanted fats and additional sodium in the diet.

Unwanted fats and excess sodium in the diet may adversely affect cardiac health and increase hypertension.

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BAKERY REVIEW

Nescafe Got a New Jingle Ho suru har din aise, ho suru har paal aise… is the newest jingle from Nescafe, which young coffee connoisseurs are expected to hum in the days to come. Shankar Ehsaan Loy, India’s leading music composers, have been roped in by Nescafe for its new commercial — ‘The Morning Band.’ This adds to a series of commercials for the brand, featuring Purab Kohli and Deepika Padukone. With this commercial Nescafè has planned to jazz up your mornings. Since Deepika and Purab Kohli have been associated with the coffee major for quite some time now, it seemed only natural that they be the ones to introduce ‘The Morning Band.’

The script is quite interesting. One fine morning, when Purab is barely awake in his apartment, in walks Deepika and she is not alone.

She has guests who have arrived for the morning coffee.

The guests are none other than Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy. What happens next is sheer musical bliss as Shankar Mahadevan and his band take on the stage, right in Purab’s living room. All this while, Deepika watches on.The message is simple and effective — why settle only for your morning coffee when you can also have The Morning Band playing with it? Now it would be interesting to see how well the target consumers of Nescafe get hooked on to this imaginative musical coffee session, and translate their interests into revenues.

A Rich Craft Course for Bakers Rich Graviss & MSIHMCT (Maharashtra State Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology), Pune completed their first ‘Craft Course’ on 29th November 2012, in Pune, which is expected to provide a platform for aspiring Patisserie and Bakery Chefs.

Cutting off from the mundane regularity, bakers are now looking at experimenting with novel ingredients and inculcating them into their cake creations. As part of Rich’s endeavour to help the bakery industry to grow, the company initiated a specialised entry level bakery course in association with the Maharashtra State Institute of Hotel Management & Catering Technology, Pune. The course design has been tailored specifically to cater to the entry level audience, seeking employment opportunities in the bakery industry or looking to get assistance in starting their own micro enterprises.

The pilot course was initiated in May 2012 with nine students from in and around Pune, and the five-month course was completed in September 2012. Rich’s conducted the convocation ceremony for these nine students at the college campus, in the presence of the faculty of the college, and Harmeet Chaddha, the owner, Bread Story.

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Confectionery Market to Grow in India According to a knowledge consulting solutions company, Netscribes Inc., the confectionery market in India is expected to witness a steady growth in demand in spite of the ‘indulgence product’ tag. The report of Netscribes identifies trends in the confectionery industry such as the growing gifting culture and the use of confectionery products as a replacement of traditional sweets. An analysis of the socio-economic factors boosting the growth

of confectioneries include the growing gifting culture, low per capita consumption of confectionery, rapid urbanization, growing retail market, growing income and consumption, developing rural sector and marketing campaigns.

Moreover, the rural market is also a major contributor to the Confectionery industry due to its massive demand and consumption in terms of volume. This is further facilitated by the penetration and availability of confectioneries at different price points along with the increased disposable income amongst consumers.

According to the report, all these factors indicate a bright future for the confectionery market in India.

The report goes on to highlight the various aspects of the Indian confectionery market by segregating it on the basis of product types i.e. sugar confectionery, chocolate confectionery and chewing gums. It contains a brief overview about each category along with their respective market sizes. Information on the chocolate companies, the boiled sugar candy market and other aspects of the market in terms of products are provided in the exclusive report.

The major trends identified in the confectionery sector include events, functional confectioneries, packing variations, new launches, innovation in products, creative advertising and corporate activities taking place in the industry. The key challenges for the confectionery industry, according to the report, include rise in ingredient prices, rise in packaging costs, regulatory challenges and the fake confectionery products in the market.

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C hocolate elebrating

Culture

Chocolate has a long legacy of sensuous and romantic connotation. Gifting your loved ones a box of chocolates is gaining trendy acceptance in India. The noted American cartoonist Charles M. Schulz, the creator of ‘Peanuts,’ has rightly quipped that, “All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.” No wonder, amidst the predominantly young metropolitan India, with sizeable numbers of young population with disposable incomes and global influences, chocolates are emerging as the preferred gift items in Valentine’s Day or birthdays.

In many cases, these dark delights are also replacing the traditional mithais as gift items on the very traditional festive occasions like Diwali, Rakhi and Holi. This has given a boost to the chocolate industry, which did not feel the effects of recession. Ashok Malkani takes a look at the prospects of the industry and the future trends of the consumers which the industry will have to comply with.

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ith the festive season on, gifting has become the norm of the day. And, while traditionally, kuchh meetha ho jai referred to the sweetmeats (mthais) in India, it has now come to acquire a new connotation: that of chocolates. Yes, these sweets targeted primarily at the children have now become favourites with adults too.

These days you can find lovers of chocolates among all age groups, and chocolates have the capacity to add that necessary bit of additional sweetness to every joyous occasion. Chocolates can be a part of any memorable occasion right from consolidating your friendship or expressing your love for someone, to simply celebrating life, for no apparent reason whatsoever. In these times, chocolates have become a perfect gifting solution for the festive season when you wish for joy, prosperity and health of your loved ones.

Exhibiting Impressive Growth No wonder, Netscribes (India) Pvt. Ltd., a knowledge consulting solutions company, in its report ‘Branded Chocolate Market in India 2012’, states that the chocolate market in India is expected to see steady growth in the future. An analysis of the drivers explains the factors for growth of the chocolate market and includes tradition of gifting chocolates, attractive pricing, increase in disposable income and low per capita consumption of chocolates. Despite being considered as an indulgence product, chocolate has witnessed an increase in its consumer base in the country. Increased disposable incomes coupled with growing preferences for luxury products have fostered the growth of chocolate market in India.

According to the recently published Technopak report, the chocolate market in India was pegged at Rs.2000 crore and was showing an impressive growth rate ranging between 18 -20 percent per annum. However, more than 65 percent of chocolate consumption in India takes place in urban India.

Though the chocolate industry is highly fragmented in terms of its range of products, it caters to a wide variety of consumers. The sweet tooth among a sizeable number of Indians and the

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tradition of gifting sweets on occasions, rising disposable incomes among select pockets of Indian society whose numbers are sizeable, and the evolution of globalised influences in urban Indian milieu have together contributed to the growing demand for chocolates in India.

A Delightful Gift It is true that in upwardly mobile urban India chocolates are fast becoming attractive gift propositions and are fast replacing the traditional mithais in this regard. However, that doesn’t mean that traditional mithais are not used as gift items on festive occasions; they are but their prevalence in the festive gift segment is getting diminished. The role of media and savvy marketing techniques in helping chocolates present themselves as attractive gift items also cannot be discounted.

For example, the campaigns of

Cadbury Diary Milk’s have managed to successfully position chocolates as a substitute for traditional sweets. “Over the years, the company has been able to build an even stronger emotional and cultural connect with chocolates by presenting them as thoughtful personal gifts, and by enhancing their relevance around traditional festivities like Diwali and Rakhi. Over the last decade, Cadbury’s campaigns have creatively connected festivities with chocolates by coalescing the spirit of family unions, friendships and most importantly, by wafting the joy and happiness,” explained Chandramouli Venkatesan, Director, Snacking and Strategy, Cadbury India Ltd. A spokesperson of Nestle India attributed that chocolate gifting was growing mainly because of convenience and perceived longer shelf-life of chocolates. However, he maintains that

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chocolate gifting is still a niche segment in the gifting business, which is seen mainly during festivals. Nestle introduced gift packs for chocolate assortments in the recent years, which are doing sweet business.

The History of Gifting Chocolates Giving chocolate as a gift is however, not a modern phenomenon. It dates back to the ancient days when the Aztecs presented cups of their chocolate concoctions to important personalities of those times, which ranged from the kings and other royalties and warriors, etc. They held the belief that chocolate or the cacao beans were gifts from their Gods. Here it deserves a mention that the precursor to our modern day chocolate was the Aztec drink named xocoatl, which was an amalgamation of water, spices and grind cacao beans. Aztecs also used the cacao beans as a form of currency and for payment of tribute to their kings.

After the Spanish conquest over Aztecs, the European imperial power dominated the acquisition and application of cacao beans, but managed to prevent the idea of chocolates to spread across the then known world for almost a century. Only when the Spanish Princess Anna gave her husband King Louis XIII, a gift of chocolate drink, the popularity of the drink eventually swam beyond the Louis’ court and spread to Italy and Austria. The journey of the global popularity of chocolate had begun after centuries of seclusion…

It is interesting to know that during the days of Aztec civilisation, chocolate was also known as an aphrodisiac. The

history reveals that the Aztec Emperor Montezuma used to savour several cups of chocolate drink to maintain his virility.

Much later in the history, even Casanova, the eternal master of love making, was taken in by the aphrodisiacal qualities of chocolate and often used to gift chocolates to his romantic interests. It was Cadbury who introduced the first chocolate box in 1765 after cocoa beans were brought to Dorchester, Massachusetts, from the West Indies. Since then boxed chocolates have become popular gift items.

Over the centuries, the gifting tradition of chocolates eventually became more widespread. The British troops fighting the Boer War in South Africa got a New Year’s gift of specially molded chocolates from the Queen Victoria, in the first year of our last century. During the World War II, American soldiers garnered popularity among European children for being gift bearers of 4-ounce chocolate bars.

The Tradition Becomes Trendy Today, the age-old tradition of gifting chocolates has become much more trendy, commercial, designer and market savvy. But the innocent and timeless joy of gifting and receiving chocolates still

One of the Chocolate Creations of Celeste Chocolates

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remain and would continue to remain for years to come. Still the gift of a box of gourmet chocolates can bring out a wideeyed child out of a hard nosed middleaged professional. This is true for new-age urban India too.

According to the above-mentioned Technopak report, Cadbury accounts for 70 percent share of the Indian chocolate market, whereas Nestle has 20 percent share of the market. There is no denying the fact that these two major players have been instrumental in shaping the chocolate market in India, and making it graduate from the nascent stage to the presently adolescent stage. They have done so through huge and sustained investments in product development, marketing and brand building. But at the same time, it is not wise to evaluate the Indian chocolate market by ignoring the remaining 10 percent market share where many small but creative players are operating to create delightful chocolates which are great to look and eat, and to gift.

Nowadays, not only people are looking at chocolates from Cadbury and Nestle as gift items, but they are now also looking at customised chocolates and premium chocolates to gift their loved ones. Several companies have come up with special gift packs of chocolates. Incidentally, customised means personalised, and consumers will pay more for getting something ‘just for me.’ You can now translate your imagination or wild fantasies in the shape of edible chocolates.

Personalised photos, images and messages on the unique chocolate gifts are also not uncommon.

Delhi-based Celeste Chocolates is an important player in the field of customdesigned chocolates. Hand-crafted from fine ingredients and presented in exquisitely designed gift cases befitting all occasions, the premium chocolate offerings from Celeste Chocolates cater to the chocoholic’s palate with refined flavours and forge a sweet bond that often lasts a lifetime. Be it a wedding or a newborn’s arrival; a special moment or a birthday bash; custom creation for corporate promotion or a traditional festival gift — Celeste’s ever-expanding portfolio of exquisite chocolates is widely recognised for their rich aromas, great tastes and unmatched elegance of presentation.

Bliss Chocolates of Bangalore has come up with beautifully crafted gift boxes,

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BAKERY REVIEW which can be described as visual treats.

They are customised to meet the whims and fancies of customers who would like to go that extra mile to make their precious one’s day special. And the gift boxes are further complemented with the arrangement of chocolates and other assortments inside the box which is likely to have the receiver squeal in delight! The company has distinguished Executive Chefs who are dedicated to crafting exquisite handmade chocolates, desserts and cakes.

“We have always endeavoured to push the boundaries of chocolate culture in India. We are driven towards innovation in terms of quality, uniqueness in flavour, and customisation. And it is this conviction that constantly motivates us to be different and initiate the nuance of chocolate making and consumption in the country.

During the festive season, Bliss Luxe Chocolate Lounge presents an exciting array of unique gifting ideas for your loved ones. Gift your near-and-dears a blissful treat of European premium chocolates or show that you care with the finest Belgian chocolates encased in innovative and sophisticated packaging,” elaborated Vimal Sharma, CEO and Founder, Bliss Chocolates.

Besides, the brands of Cadbury and Nestle, and the designer delights from many stand-alone bakeries, India also has premium category of branded chocolates which include names like Lindt, Ferrero, Hershey’s, Patchi, Leonidas, Godiva, Mars, etc. These premium chocolates are mostly imported and command a much higher price than your regular chocolate options. One can gift them if only one has deep pockets.

Facilitating Business and HR However, chocolates are not only gifted during festive occasions. It is also increasingly serving as a corporate gift in urban India, especially in metropolitan India, in the form of appreciation of an employee’s contribution, or in the way of acknowledging the support of a client.

Chocolates are emerging as facilitative tools for warm HR relationship and smooth business operations.

“Chocolates are considered all-time favourites whether one chooses to gift one’s employees and/or clients, and a number of companies have replaced other sweets with chocolates as gift items. Many of

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them seek customised chocolate hampers and bouquets,” averred Floyd Pereira, Owner, Dark Temptations - Cakes and Chocolates. Pereira believes that putting together a wide variety of chocolates, encompassing different shapes, sizes and flavours, spruced with creative packaging, make for a wonderful gift.

The Technopak study has revealed that independent retailers are still the largest distribution channel for chocolates, but at the same time it has pointed out that modern retail is supporting the growth of chocolates in India in a big way. This indicates great scope for high-end retail bakeries to adorn their shelves with designer chocolate creations, which can be consumed as pure indulgence or can be used as caring or intelligent gifts for festivities or facilitation of business and HR relationship in corporate culture.

Future Choco Trends With changing times and people becoming not only health conscious but also particular about innovativeness what would be the chocolate trends in India, during the next decade, say in 2020s? According to the industry experts, chocolate could be driving the trend towards nutraceuticals. Healthy ingredients such as super-fruits, nuts and oats are expected to attract common usage these days, and they can be increasingly used in chocolates.

Chocolates with innovative ingredients such as medicinal herbs can also gain currency in the near future. Chocolates devoid of additives will become the norm in developed economies, and this trend is expected to soon percolate to India also, in these globalised era. We can expect that in India too dark chocolate would gain popularity as consumers are likely to become more aware of its health benefits in these health conscious times.

Packaging is expected to become trendier in the near future. This is because the consumer preferences for chocolates in India are expected to become more evolved and fashionable than today, and the competition in the chocolate industry

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is expected to become more tough with the entry of new and talented chocolatiers in this rapidly growing chocolate industry.

To distinguish their products or product range from the competition and to reduce their costs and thus increase their profitability, many more numbers of the creative chocolate manufacturers in India are expected to introduce innovative packaging in the years ahead than they are doing now. They may also devise intelligent ways to prevent their chocolates’ from melting in hot and humid climate, without resorting to conventional refrigeration. Introduction of new bar sizes are also expected to feature prominently among the future chocolate trends. Rising obesity levels and the spread of lifestyle diseases may also demand reduced portion sizes from the market, which the market is expected to comply.

With the evolution of consumer preferences, particularly among the upwardly mobile section of metropolitan India, the demand for designer chocolates or customised chocolates is also expected to grow in the near future. We can see many more innovative designs or simulations reflecting our interests and imaginations on these dark delights, in the years ahead.

And at the same time, as the traditional chocolate markets of Western Europe and North America become saturated, many of the chocolate manufacturers from developed economies now need to explore the markets for chocolates in the emerging economies like India more vigourously than ever before. This may expect us to see many more foreign players in the Indian chocolate industry, in the near future.

All said and done, the demand for chocolates in general and chocolates as gift items are growing, both in the business and leisure domains, and we should take considerable pleasure in this business phenomenon, which is not only flowing delightfully and sensuously, but is also brimming with a plethora of interesting and exotic trends. It is about time, the middle class India and the chocolate industry start celebrating the fast evolving chocolate culture, which is spearheading through the socio-cultural milieu of urban India. 

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Notes in the

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BAKERY REVIEW

Dairy is one of the edifices of the bakery industry across the world, and India is no exception to this trait. Without milk and milk-based products, the bakery industry cannot survive. The obvious health impacts of the dairy products have made them essential features of a balanced diet. The dairy products can be positioned as cheap and nutritious food items for our people, especially for the large proportion of vegetarian population of India, for whom dairy products do serve as the only form of acceptable source of animal protein.

The dairy products not only help to preserve the well-being of our present and past generations, and serve as building blocks of health for our future generations, but they do also serve as important sources of livelihood in rural areas. Here Swarnendu Biswas explores the growth and challenges of India’s evolving dairy industry.

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P

eople in India have a long history of love affair with milk and milk products.

Neither does the availability of milk and milk products is a matter of great introspection, as India not only is the highest producer of milk, but given the low yields from cattle in India, the potential for increasing the milk production in the country is also huge.

Owing to conventional dietary habits of Indian households, about 60 percent of milk produced is consumed in the liquid form and the remaining is consumed in the form of butter, clarified butter (desi ghee), cheese, curd, paneer, ice cream, dairy whiteners and traditional sweets India, which is the highest producer of milk in the world, and according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), attained a milk production of 123 million tonnes in 2011, accounts for approximately 17 percent of the world’s total dairy produce. According to United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), fostered by growing demand and strong prices, India’s milk production is estimated to increase by 5 percent to reach 129 million tonnes in the current calendar year. However, according to our government statistics, India had produced over 127 million tonnes of milk during the 2011-12 fiscal.

Need to Increase Affordability From the above discussion we can easily infer that the availability and acceptability of dairy products is not much of a challenge in India. Though acceptability and availability of dairy products in India is not much of a concern, but their affordability still is. Despite being the largest consumer of milk and milk products in the world, India is also characterised by the tragedy where many of its children have to go without their daily dosage of milk. This shouldn’t

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be overlooked by the governments and also the industry. In fact, greater affordability of milk and milkbased products can give the much needed momentum to the dairy industry and eventually the bakery industry in a big way.

The estimated demand for milk in India was only 110 million tonnes in 2011, which was much less than its output. Per capita consumption of milk in India is dismal as compared to that of the developed world.

Now demand should not be confused with mere acceptability or empty want; demand is an economic term which entails the desire to have a commodity, backed by purchasing power.

Though according to the National Dairy Development Board, the demand for milk in India is estimated to escalate to 172 million tonnes by 2021-22, and though according to many experts, with the increase in disposable incomes, consumption of milk and milk products will increase in the near future, but the priceless question of present remains that how to bring milk and consequently, the assorted variety of milk products, within the range of affordability of the significant majority of the teeming millions of India. One practical way out is to distribute milk in small quantities, say in polythene sachets of 100 ml and 250 ml. Already, the glass bottle for retailing milk has given way to singleuse sachets, which are more economical. Selling small quantities of milk powder in mini sachets is another way out to address the affordability factor.

Productivity and Quality The lowering of

costs of milk by further increasing the productivity of the dairy industry is another effective alternative. This can be easily done through increasing the productivity of our cattle, whose yields are much lower on an average, than their western counterparts.

For that again farmers need to have financial support of the state so that they can improve the health of their livestock. Using the unproductive bovine population who often create a nuisance on the busy roads, for milk production in government sponsored farmlands can also enhance the milk production of India even further.

Besides affordability, the other factor plaguing the Indian dairy industry is the rampant lack of quality. The total share of the milk production in the organised sector, which includes government bodies like NDDB, cooperatives as well as the organised private sector, is barely 20 percent. What is therefore disquieting is that as much as 80 percent share of the total milk production in the country is accounted for by the unorganised sector, which often indulges in selling sub-standard, non- pasteurised milk, and more often than not, milk adulterated with harmful chemicals.

In the recent past, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) collected 1791 samples of milk from urban and rural areas of the country, out of which the body found that 1226 samples did not conform to its quality standards, under the Food Safety and Standards Act. FSSAI informed this sordid fact to the Supreme Court through an affidavit. The affidavit stated that the study also indicated traces of detergent in some cases. The FSSAI revealed, as was expected, that water was the most common adulterant in those milk samples. Only 31.5 percent of these samples, which were collected from across the country during 2011, conformed to the statutory standards, which were set

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under the FSS Act, 2006.

Poor quality of animal feeds and poorly bred cattle also result in low milk yield of low quality. According to an expert, presently the productivity of milk yield of cattle in India is only 800-1000 litres per cattle per year, whereas globally for the best varieties, the figure varies between 7000-8000 litres. Poor cattle yield and rampant lack of desired quality in milk and milk products are among the reasons why the India dairy industry cannot develop to its full potential. The fact that milk processing industry in India is miniscule as compared to the huge amount of milk produced every year is also a cause of serious concern for the dairy and the bakery industry of the country.

Government should address these challenges with due urgency, with more stringent quality control norms in the production of milk and assorted dairy products. However, mere rules would not serve the purpose without the necessary political will to implement them.

Presently, a great majority of Indian farmers lack the requisite finance to invest in improving cattle yields.

It should also provide finance to dairy farmers so that they are

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able to produce high yield varieties of cattle, and provide nutritious feed to their cattle. At the same time, concerted efforts should be made by both the governments and the Indian dairy industry to increase the ambit of the organised sector. Proper cold chain facilities and logistics should be drastically increased on a war footing to address the looming health problem; perpetrated by rampant unhygiene in dairy production.

Demand for Dairy However, in a country of alarming socio-economic and cultural contrasts like India, though a great many Indians cannot afford milk and other dairy products, at the same time we are witnessing that the demand for milk and milk-based products in India is rising rapidly too. This perhaps owes to the increase in the pocket size of people with disposable incomes. The demand for milk and value-added dairy products in the domestic market has been exhibiting a decent growth of over 6 to 8 per cent per annum primarily because of increasing income among a section of population which controls the market, their rising aspirations, and the growth in per capita milk consumption as a result of this trend.

They

trend can propel the growth of the dairy industry in India even further.

According to ASSOCHAM, with rapid increase in domestic demand for milk and milk-based products, the dairy industry in India is likely to reach about Rs.5 lakh crore by 2015. According to a study titled ‘Indian Dairy Industry: The Way Ahead’ released by The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) in late 2011, milk production is also likely to reach about 190 million tonnes in 2015.

But the study didn’t only show a rosy picture. The ASSOCHAM study also pointed out that the upward spiralling prices and lack of fodder resulting in low yield from cattle together with lack of trained and skilled dairy farm labour, lack of proper infrastructure like cold storage facilities and lack of transparent milk pricing system were certain key problems affecting retail consumption of milk and leading to escalating milk prices in the domestic market. The scenario has hardly changed within a year after the study.

Characterised by high growth rate, the domestic dairy industry provides a huge for foreign companies also, especially those which are based in New Zealand and Australia. However, tariff and regulatory barriers are proving to be impediments for foreign companies to enter the Indian dairy segment in a big way.

Adorning the Shelves However, if we concentrate exclusively on the organised dairy sector of India, things seem to be happening for the better. With the rise in the wave of health consciousness, many new-age dairy products, which have excellent health characteristics, have also shown increase in popularity in India over the years.

Nowadays, we can see a wide variety of healthy dairy products by important brands, adorning the supermarket shelves with increasing regularity.

Parag Milk Foods, one of the leading players in the country in the dairy

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BAKERY REVIEW industry, has envisaged to invest Rs. 450 crore for setting up two state-of-theart dairy plants in the country, which will come up in eastern and northern India. These investments are part of the company’s plans to enhance its milk processing capacity to 50 lakh litres of milk per day (LLPD) by 2020 from its existing 20 LLPD. Similarly, Fonterra, the New Zealand-based dairy giant, which was one-time partner of the Bangalore-based Britannia Industries, has announced that it was coming up with a local office in India, more specifically in Delhi, in an endeavour to step up its presence in the country. These are two of the many recent symptoms, which should augur well for the organised Indian dairy industry in the near future.

In fact, Indian probiotic dairy industry is evolving at a steady pace with opportunities for tremendous growth in near future. Indian probiotic industry is expected to be more than double by 2015 from that of its size in 2011. Brands that exist now in the Indian probiotic industry are Nestle, Amul, Yakult Danone and Mother Dairy along with other minor players operating in different regions in their own capacities.

Take the case of Probiotic Curd from Mother Dairy that contains billions of BB-12 friendly bacteria, which have a higher survival rate in the stomach thereby facilitating better digestion and absorption of nutrients and hence facilitating in improving the overall health. It also contains prebiotic fibre, which stimulates activity of probiotic bacteria facilitating in improved digestive

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health.

Furthermore, Mother Dairy’s fruit yoghurts are delicious, with generous helpings of fresh fruits blended in with thick, creamy, milk yoghurt. They are ideal for both on the go and at home consumption. Mother Dairy’s yoghurts, in addition to their delectable tastes, are also rich sources of antioxidants and support good health. The active lactic cultures present in these yoghurts does foster better nutrition and facilitate digestion. The Mother Dairy’s yoghurts are available in blueberry, mango, raspberry and plum varieties. In addition to the above-mentioned attributes, the Plum Yoghurt of Mother Dairy is also a rich source of phytonutrients which helps in disease prevention.

In the recent times, the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), the body behind the nationally renowned Amul, has

introduced a flavoured yoghurt, which is claimed to be fortified with essential vitamins. It contains live probiotic bacteria which facilitates digestion and improves immunity. The yoghurt is named as Flaavyo, and of course, it is made of natural ingredients. Presently, Flaavyo comes in mango, strawberry, pineapple, vanilla and misti doi flavours.

Amul’s Probiotic Dahi is also another example of healthy dairy products from the brand. The product facilitates the maintaining of a healthy digestive system, and its calcium content helps build stronger bones and teeth. The product also contributes towards enhancing the immune function of the body. Here it deserves a mention that Amul is the leader in probiotic yoghurt sales in India.

Then there is Nestle Real Fruit Yoghurts range, which happens to be 98 percent fat free, available in mango and strawberry variants. This product

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range combines the goodness of natural yoghurts and real fruits and has been developed inline with the key consumer health trends, along with consumer feedback. Now the company has come up with Nestle Junior Daheez, a range of fruit dahis, fortified with calcium, vitamin D and protein. Available in real fruit variants of mango and strawberry, the range has been launched in Delhi-NCR, Chandigarh and Ludhiana. This product is specially developed with growing kids in mind.

NESTLE ActiPlus Dahi is another example of healthy curds and yoghurts flooding the supermarket shelves. It is a deliciously thick and tasty low fat curd enriched with the goodness of more than 100 crore special probiotics in every serving of 100 gm, which together facilitates to ensure that your digestive system remains strong and healthy. Here it deserves a mention that NESTLÉ ActiPlus Dahi contains a unique strain of probiotic — from the Lactobacillus Acidophilus probiotic family — whose singular action in the intestine delivers many positive benefits, leading to a healthy digestive system. Moreover, this curd is 98 percent fat free, which makes it an ideal food choice for a holistically healthy lifestyle.

The Sweet Dividends Besides the probiotic curds and yoghurts, two other dairy products, which can scale great heights of popularity in the near future and thereby give a further impetus to the growth of the Indian dairy industry, are chocolate and ice cream.

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The estimated size of the Indian ice cream market, which includes both the branded and the unbranded market, is estimated at Rs.2500 crore per annum, out of which Rs.1500 crore is accounted by the organised segment, where Amul is the market leader. The Indian ice cream industry is growing at an impressive rate of 18 percent per annum. The changes taking place in the consumer behaviour of Indians are evident from many things. One of the symptoms is the mushrooming of ice cream parlours here, there and everywhere, especially in the metropolitan and tier-I cities of India.

This reflects the growing popularity of ice cream among Indians.

Moreover, the per capita ice cream consumption in India is much low by global standards, reflecting great potential for its growth in the short-run. The per capita ice cream consumption in India is only 300 ml per annum as against the awe inspiring 22 litres in the US. The global average of per capita ice cream consumption is 2.3 litres per annum, which is also much higher than the average Indian’s ice cream consumption per year.

At the same time, in these days, the application of chocolates in the Indian bakery industry is perhaps more pronounced than ever before. Chocolate making classes and chocolates as gift items have become vogue in metropolitan India. Many talented bakers and chocolatiers are making their presence felt in the Indian bakery industry with their dark and delightful creations. Now, designer hand-made chocolates for

weddings, birthdays and other festive occasions are craved by the trendy and the upwardly mobile India.

However, like truth, the business of chocolates in India is also complex, beautiful and multilayered. Despite the success stories of a slew of entrepreneurs and chocolatiers in the recent years, and despite the fact that though the Indian chocolate consumption is no longer limited to the infrequent bites of Cadbury Diary Milk, Munch, and Kit Kat, the Indian chocolate market is still way behind European and the US levels. The consciousness and the market for chocolates are increasing in India, though they are both at a nascent stage as compared to the evolved taste and the markets of the developed countries of the west. However, this means both the ice cream and the chocolate segments have huge potential to grow amidst the backdrop of increasing disposable incomes and maturation of globalisation in India.

Succinctly, both these delightful products already are experiencing growing demand and even greater future potential in the upwardly mobile section of urban India, and with the impressive growth of the Indian dairy industry, creative marketing can increase the demand for the products of branded players in the ice cream and chocolate segment even further, thereby encouraging more and more branded players invading the market space of ice cream and chocolates.

And the growth of the ice cream and chocolate segments can in turn propel the growth of the Indian dairy industry, by creating more demand for milk and milk products in the long-run.

So we can see that despite plagued by challenges, the future of the Indian dairy industry, especially the organised dairy industry, looks quite bright. However, our failure to address the challenges of the dairy industry quickly, and the failure to create an enabling environment to make quality dairy products available to the majority of the poor and marginalised population at extremely affordable rates, will impede the industry to reap the optimum dividends from its growth.

Neither would then the growth of the dairy industry would be endowed with the dimension of development; which is so necessary for every industry to thrive and evolve in the long-run. 

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The Proof of the

Pudding

By Swarnendu Biswas

T

hey say the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

Well, this age- old proverb holds true for all things and persons in life, which also includes pudding. Pudding is a very common but delicious dessert or savoury dish in the western countries. It has also gained much popularity in India. Our own rice pudding is termed as kheer. Pudding as a dessert is often served with fruits and cream toppings. Though puddings are commonly perceived as desserts, they are also treated as a savoury dish, and have the history of serving as a part of the main meal.

There are various types of puddings, such as rice pudding, Christmas pudding, Yorkshire pudding, black pudding, suet pudding, etc. Yorkshire pudding, black

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pudding, suet pudding are all savoury versions of pudding. The word pudding is believed to have a French origin; it is derived from the French word boudin, which means small sausage. It is not surprising, because in the medieval Europe, encased meats were used in the puddings. In fact, medieval puddings were mostly meat-based.

The puddings can be baked, steamed and boiled. Here it deserves a mention that boiled pudding was a common main course aboard ships in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, during the 18th and 19th centuries.

A Short History of Pudding It is being claimed by many that the British discovered the pudding in its modern form. However, this claim is not

without its share of disputes. The rice puddings from Asia came much before the advent of British puddings. Though typical British pudding (barring rice pudding, which has its origins in Asia), as we know today, found its rightful place in the Victorian England, its origins can be traced to the early fifteenth century.

During the course of centuries, pudding has gone through considerable transformation. The 17th century English puddings were either savoury (meatbased) or sweet (flour, nuts & sugar) and were generally boiled in special pudding bags. Surprisingly, pudding emerged into the gastronomic scene of Europe not as a dessert, but as a way of preserving meat in the winter.

In the medieval Europe, it was a custom to slaughter surplus livestock

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in autumn because of the shortage of fodder. The meat of the slaughtered livestock was kept in a pastry case along with dried fruits. The dried fruits acted as preservatives. At the festive season, those preserved meats were consumed as mince pies by a host of people. An ancient preparation made of meat, vegetables, dried fruits, sugar and spices named pottage, which can be dated back to the Roman era, can also be viewed as a precursor to the modern pudding.

Pottage assumed great popularity in England during the Elizabethian era, and from that time, they were referred to as plum pottage. By the eighteenth century, with the improvement in the techniques of meat preservation, the savoury elements of mince pie and plum pottage decreased, and their sweet content increased. It was during that time when pottage began to be referred to as plum pudding.

By the latter half of the 18th century, traditional English puddings (except the black puddings) were no longer having meat in them. By the 19th century, modern puddings, which we have today, began to take shape in England.

However, they were still boiled, and the finished product was more like cakes. Modern steamed puddings are derived from this gastronomic legacy.

These puddings were traditionally served at the Christmas time, and the same tradition continues to this day. In the following passages, we would attempt to explore some important types of puddings, without which the world of gastronomy would be less rich.

Puddings for the Christmas One of the most popular types of puddings is the Christmas pudding. The tradition of Christmas pudding has its origins in England. Many households have their own recipes for Christmas pudding, which are often passed on through family lineage for generations.

This dessert is traditionally served on the day of the Christmas, and is also often referred to as the plum pudding.

Christmas pudding is a steamed pudding, usually made with suet, and teems with

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BAKERY REVIEW dry fruit and nuts. Most recipes of Christmas pudding involve dark sugar and black treacle, which gives it a black colour. This type of pudding includes the involvement of the citrus fruits’ juice, brandy, and alcohol too.

In the nineteenth century, Christmas puddings were boiled in a pudding cloth, but since the beginning of the twentieth century they have usually been prepared in basins. Nowadays, the initial cooking usually involves steaming for many hours.

Before serving, the Christmas pudding is reheated by steaming once more, and dressed with warm brandy, which is set alight.

It is a tradition to top the Christmas pudding with a sprig of holly. Once turned out of its basin, the Christmas pudding should be adorned with holly, doused in brandy, and flamed or ‘fired’.

Then the pudding is traditionally brought to the table ceremoniously, and is usually greeted with a round of applause from the guests and/or family members.

The Christmas pudding has the interesting tradition of keeping small silver coins in the pudding mixture. A person who gets the coin/s in his share of the pudding, can keep the coin/s. The coins are believed to bring wealth and prosperity in the coming year. However, this practice has lost currency, with the disappearance of real silver coins from the scene. It is believed that alloy coins could taint the pudding, and thus the practice is seldom being carried out.

When the Pudding is Black Besides Christmas pudding, black pudding is also very much popular among the people across various cultures and cuisines. Black pudding is also referred to as the blood pudding. It is different from the traditional English

puddings. It is a dark sausage filled with animal blood, and seasoned and cooked with fillers such as pieces of meat, and bits of suet, oatmeal, bread, sweet potato and barley. The concoction is congealed until it solidifies. The fillers, seasonings, and type of animal blood used vary according to the regional tastes and local availability.

Black pudding is not only popular in England and Ireland, but is a part of various cuisines across the world.

It is a delicacy that often adorns the breakfast tables of Europe. However, various cuisines around the world prepare different versions of black pudding.

The preparation process of a typical British black pudding involves pig’s blood, mixed with pork fat and oatmeal or barley. It is an important breakfast item among the British people.

Germany’s very own version of black pudding, known as blutwurst blutwurst, comprises of a preparation of pork rind, pig’s or cow’s blood, and barley. It is sometimes served warm, The French make their black puddings or boudin noir with pig’s blood, pork fat, onions, and bread crumbs. Here the involvements of cereals like oatmeal or barley are not there. However, cream and apple brandy are often added to the boudin noir and thus French version of black pudding is much lighter in texture than that of a typical English black pudding.

Spain also has its own version of black pudding, which is known as morcilla.

Here also fat and blood of the pig are being used, but here rice is used as filler.

Morcilla is often served as a tapas dish, or in other words, as snack foods meant to be eaten between meals. It deserves a mention that black puddings can also be made with the blood of animals other than pigs and cows. The blood of ducks, lambs and geese may be used in the preparation of black pudding, but they are far less common in usage as compared to the pig’s blood.

Puddings from the Yorkshire As the name suggests, Yorkshire pudding is a savoury pudding that originated in Yorkshire, England, but over the

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F O C U S

BAKERY REVIEW decades, it has attracted global praise and popularity. It is made from batter, and is often served with roast beef, chicken, or any gravy dish. In the UK, Yorkshire pudding frequently becomes an important feature in the Sunday lunch. In some cases, this pudding is eaten as a separate course, prior to the main meat dish.

The famed dish is cooked by pouring a thin batter made from flour, eggs, butter, milk and seasoning into a preheated greased baking tin containing very hot fat or oil. Then bake the batter at very high heat until it has risen and browned.

Now the Yorkshire pudding is ready to be served in slices or quarters, depending on the size of the tray in which it was cooked. A tray of Yorkshire pudding, which had taken its birth fresh from the oven, should ideally be well-risen, with a golden brown colour. It should have a crisp exterior and soft middle.

It is a tradition to cook the Yorkshire pudding in a large tin underneath a roasting joint of meat. The objective is to catch the dripping fat and then cut

Oct-Nov ’12

appropriately. Yorkshire pudding may also be made in the same pan as the meat, after the meat has been cooked and shifted to a serving platter. This process would utilise the residual meat fat.

Creamy Stuff The creamy pudding is another delectable dessert, which is a concoction of sugar, milk, and a thickening agent such as gelatin, cornstarch, eggs, rice or tapioca.

It is a sweet, creamy dessert, where infusion of fruits, dry fruits and essence can always enhance the taste and flavour.

These puddings can be created

either by simmering on top of the stove in a saucepan or double boiler, or alternatively, by baking in an oven. Double boiler is often used for preparation of these types of puddings so as to prevent the scorching of the pudding on the stovetop, which preparation of these types of puddings often involves. Microwave oven can also be used to make these puddings. Creamy puddings are generally served chilled.

There are many other varieties of puddings, such as cheese pudding, corn pudding, bread pudding, chocolate pudding, tapioca pudding, pease pudding, etc. which have made their respective niches in the world of gastronomy. Pudding is indeed a very flexible dish, encompassing a wide variety of culinary styles in its ambit. And like in all great dishes, the preparation process and culinary skills play a bigger role in the taste of the pudding, than the ingredients involved. And the proof of its taste, of course, lies in eating. So, when are you preparing your own version of pudding? 

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P R O D U C T

BAKERY REVIEW

Baguettes

Bakeries

By Kanishka Gupta

I

t was only my second visit to the The Grand, New Delhi in eight years’ time and I was pleasantly surprised by the changes that had occurred in the hotel’s surroundings. For one, the approach road is in extremely good shape and the DLF mall and a couple of other commercial buildings that have come up in an area once deserted give one a sense of habitation.

I had visited the hotel to know more about the usage of baguette (a type of long, crusty bread) from the Excutive Sous Chef Rajesh Sharma, and Pastry Chef Ayub Saleem. After a 15 minute wait which I didn’t mind, I was ushered into the banquet kitchen and on to the office cabin by Chef Rajesh. And what a sight it was! Dozens of Chefs busy doing the rounds; preparing dishes for the next banquet.

Cambodia, Laos, North Africa, Morocco, Libya, etc. It can be eaten anytime for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Baguette has an elongated shape —18-24 inches long and 2.5-4 inches in diameter— and can be used in toast, sandwiches, canopies, and also as a dessert. It is an almost 3,000-year-old bread. In New Delhi, it is found in quality bakery shops, across posh residential colonies,” said Chef

The Long and Short of It “Baguette is an elongated, crusty bread with a chewy texture, enjoyed in almost every French household and also in former French colonies like Vietnam,

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Ayub Saleem

Rajesh, while giving a basic introduction of the baguette.

A baguette, made from a basic, lean dough can be identified by its length and crisp crust. The length of the baguette can vary from country to country but a standard baguette has a diameter of about 5 - 6 centimetres (2- 2 inches) and a usual length of about 65 centimetres (26 inches), although a baguette can be up to a metre (40 inches) long too. Historically, the word baguette has been used in French to describe elongated objects like baguette magique (magic wand) or baguette chinoises (chopsticks) and it was only after 1920s that the word came to denote a French bread.

Baguettes, either of single-serving size or cut from a longer loaf, are very often used for sandwiches. Baguettes are often sliced and served with cheese. As part of the traditional Continental breakfast in France, slices of baguettes are spread with butter and jam and dipped in coffee or hot chocolate. In the US, baguettes are sometimes split in half to make French bread pizza.

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P R O D U C T

BAKERY REVIEW

The French Connection There is a distinct French connection in baguette. A ubiquitous French law dating as early as October 1920 prevented bakers from working between 10pm to 4am for making the round loaf. Finding it difficult to serve their customers in time for breakfast, the bakers of France by choice shifted to making the baguette as it could be baked quickly and within the limited time.

For the outside world, baguettes have been synonymous with French culture though the shape of the baguette had varied from time to time. The precursor to the baguettes were the long and wide loaves, which emerged during the time of Louis XIV; baguettes which were long and thin have been made since the mid 18th century, and by the 19th century, some baguettes which were several feet long were also being made.

Besides Baguettes Baguettes have a distinctive French legacy. They are especially germane to the culinary culture of Paris, though you can find them in other places of the planet, which include India too.

In France, not all long loaves can be termed as baguettes. For example, a short, almost rugby ball shaped loaf is known as a batard, a tubular shaped loaf is known as a flute and a thinner loaf is called a ficelle (string).

French breads also come as a miche, which is a large pan loaf, and a boule, literally meaning ball in French; which is a large round loaf. Sandwich-sized loaves are sometimes known as demi-baguettes, tiers, or sometimes they are called Rudi rolls.

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Rajesh Sharma

Deck/steam ovens are used to make baguettes. Deck/steam ovens have combination of elements of a gas-fired traditional oven and a brick oven; a thick ‘deck’ of stone or firebrick heated by natural gas instead of wood. Steam injection is a method used in deck ovens to create the ideal baguette. The oven is heated to 205 degree centigrade, and the steam allows the crust to expand before setting, thus creating a lighter, airier loaf.

The steam also melts the dextrose on the bread’s surface, giving a glazed effect.

The Making of Baguette “For making two portions of baguette one needs 3 cups of plain flour, 2 table spoons of fresh/dried yeast, 1.5 cup of water, 1 tea spoon of salt, and 1 tea spoon of sugar. The method to prepare baguette is to put all the ingredients together and mix well until the dough is smooth and shine proof. Then let the dough rest for 30 minutes and scale in to equal portion, round them into balls and rest further 10 minutes. Roll into long shape and arrange

in the baking sheet and rest/prove for 30 minutes until the dough doubles in size.

Then bake at 180 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. This method is called straight dough method and can make the bread in little time,” explained Chef Saleem.

Standard baguettes may contain various additives. Depending on the additives used either in the original flour or in making the bread itself, a baguette may not be considered vegan. While a regular baguette is made with baker’s yeast, it is not unusual for artisan-style loaves to be comprised of a poolish biga (a kind of yeast) or with other bread pre-ferments to enhance complexity of flavours and other characteristics. They can also be made with the addition of whole wheat flour or other grains such as rye. French bread is required by law to avoid preservatives, and as a result bread in France tend to go stale within 24 hours, thus baking baguettes in France often demands to be a daily occurrence.

Baguette loaf takes its shape through a series of folding and rolling motions, raised in cloth-lined baskets or in rows on a flour-impregnated towel, called a couche, and are baked either directly on the hearth of a deck oven or in special perforated pans tailored to hold the texture of the baguette while permitting the flow of heat through the perforations.

Outside France, baguettes are also made with other doughs. Take the case of Vietnamese bánh mì, which uses a high rice flour content. Then there are many North American bakeries which make whole wheat, multigrain, and sourdough baguettes alongside French-style loaves. 

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D A I R Y

Say

BAKERY REVIEW

Cheese to

Parmesan

By Kanishka Gupta

P

roduced in and around Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and Bologna (all in Emilia Romagna), and Mantova (in Lombardia), Italy, ParmigianoReggiano, commonly known as Parmesan in English, is a hard, cooked, granular cheese. According to the Italian law, only cheese produced in these provinces can be called as ‘Parmigiano-Reggiano’. While, Parmigiano is the Italian adjective for Parma, Reggiano is the Italian adjective for Reggio Emilia. The French call it Parmesan and it is also known in English informally by the same name. Cheeses which imitate Parmigiano-Reggiano are also called as Parmesan or ‘Italian hard cheese’ and the closest Italian imitation to ParmigianoReggiano is known as Grana Padano.

“Parmigiano-Reggiano, commonly called the Parmesan is the king of Italian cheeses and is made from skimmed cow’s milk with 28 percent to 32 percent butter fat content.

It is mixed with rennet and cooked for 30 minutes and goes through several processes of draining and drying with at least one year to mature to qualify. The true Parmesan cheese is manufactured from April to November in the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna and Mantua and has been in existence since the 11th century,” explained Suprabhath Roy, the Executive Chef of Eros — Managed by Hilton New Delhi Nehru Place.

Made from raw cow’s milk, Parmigiano-Reggiano is made by mixing the morning milking with naturally skimmed milk of the previous evening’s milking, which results in a part skim mixture. This mixture is transferred into copper-lined vats, after which starter whey is added. The mixture is heated to 33-35 degrees centigrade. Following this calf rennet is added, and the mixture is left to curdle for 10–12 minutes.

Then this curd is broken into small granular pieces and carefully the temperature is raised to 55 degree centigrade, and then the curd is left to settle for an hour. This compressed curd is placed in a muslin cloth and then divided into two lots and

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placed in moulds. The cheese is then put into a wheel shaped stainless steel dye. It is then embossed with the day, date and place of manufacturing. The imprints take place on the rind of the cheese in a day’s time and then the cheese is made to absorb salt in a brine bath for 25 days, after which it is put into the aging rooms for 12 months.

Parmigiano-Reggiano has various edible uses. It can be grated over pasta dishes, can be stirred into soups and risottos, and can also be eaten on its own. You can often find this cheese being shaved or grated over other dishes. Chunks and morsels of the hardest parts of the crust are sometimes simmered in soup. This cheese can also be eaten as a snack after roasting.

“Though it is principally used in grated form in different preparation of soups, pasta, gratin and risottos, it is very versatile and is also used as accompaniments for aperitifs and garnishes. Our consumption of Parmesan Cheese ranges from 30 to 40 kg in a month and the cost of this cheese starts from Rs.1100 per kg onwards. We use it in a multitude of preparations in its different forms but my favourite is the Blooms Salad, which is our interpretation of the classical Caesar Salad. The Blooms Salad is a fresh preparation of lettuce & Parmesan Cheese, tossed in a Parmesan dressing with garlic croutons, anchovies & quail egg,” informed Roy. The legend resonates that Parmigiano-Reggiano emerged in the global gastronomic space during the Middle Ages in Bibbiano, in the province of Reggio Emilia of Italy. Quickly its production spread to the Parma and Modena areas also.

Historical documents reveal that in the 13th and 14th centuries, Parmesan Cheese was not much different from what is produced today, which suggests that its origins can be traced to even further in the realms of history.

In 1954, a pioneering alliance of cheese makers renamed their group as Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano-Reggiano.

In choosing this name, members acknowledged the historic role played by Parma and Reggio producers in defining the

Oct-Nov ’12

BAKERY REVIEW

D A I R Y

character of the cheese and the methods Butyric acid and isovaleric acid together are for making it properly. From that point sometimes used to simulate the dominant on, the official name of the cheese has been aromas. Parmigiano-Reggiano also has high Parmigiano-Reggiano, as indicated by the pin glutamate content, containing as much as dots imprinted on the rind of each wheel.

1.2 g of glutamate per 100 gm of cheese. It Members of the Consorzio not only follow is a naturally produced food with the second strict production standards, but they work highest glutamate content. Only Roquefort together to market Parmigiano-Reggiano and Cheese ahead of it in terms of glutamate protect the name from imitators. content. The high concentration of glutamates In 2008, European courts gave the verdict results in the strong pleasant savoury taste of that Parmigiano-Reggiano is the only hard Parmigiano-Reggiano. cheese that can legally be called Parmesan. In The name is trademarked, and in Italy, so doing, they acknowledged the historical fact legal exclusive control is exercised over its that the word can be traced to Parma and that production and sales by the Parmigianoconsumers associate this cheese with its origin Reggiano cheese Consorzio, which was in the Parma-Reggio region of Italy. These constituted through a governmental decree.

Suprabhath Roy court rulings mean that a cheese cannot be Each wheel of the cheese must meet strict called Parmesan unless it conforms to the Protected Designation criteria early in the aging process, when the cheese is still soft of Origin (PDO) standards for Parmigiano-Reggiano. While and creamy, in order to deserve the official seal and be placed these laws are enforced in Europe, elsewhere in the world there in storage for aging. Because it is widely imitated, Parmigianoare many imitators. To avoid the confusion, the consortium Reggiano has become an increasingly regulated product, and of Parmigiano-Reggiano producers encourages retailers and in 1955, it became what is known as a certified name (which is consumers in the US. and other countries to understand the different from the brand name). history of Parmesan and to use the cheese’s correct name, which After ageing for 12 to 24 months, three million 40 kg is Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Parmesan wheels worth almost €2bn (£1.6bn) are sold each year Parmigiano-Reggiano is spruced with several aroma-active from the region. Two-thirds of the output stays in Italy, and the compounds, including various aldehydes and butyrates. rest — about 40,000 tonnes — is being exported. 

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O P E R A T I O N S

BAKERY REVIEW

Points to Ponder for Start-up Bakeries

By Swarnendu Biswas

R

unning a bakery is a creative and challenging business, whether be it a stand-alone bakery, a retail bakery chain, or industrial bakery operations for that matter. However, in this feature we are concentrating on the points to be considered for the running of a start-up stand-alone bakery business.

An entrepreneur venturing into bakery business should remember that simply love for baking wouldn’t do, the passion for baking should be complemented with knowledge and expertise if the entrepreneur wants to survive the competition, especially with limited funds. It should do well for her/him and many such entrepreneurs to remember that bakery business has great potential for growth in India, but the competition too is huge.

Location and Costs First of all, as an entrepreneur starting a bakery she/he should be sure of her/his location. That is she/he should be sure that the location where she/he is thinking of starting the bakery business has a need for a new bakery or not, or whether the consumer profile there is suited for the kind of baked products which she/he has in mind or has expertise in producing.

If the answer to any of these questions is no, the entrepreneur should proceed to another suitable location that is within her/his budget, without thinking twice.

Secondly, it is important to calculate in detail the fixed and variable costs involved in running the bakery operations, especially for the first six months, when the profits are not expected to trickle in.

Two examples of fixed cost are the rent of the outlet (assuming the entrepreneur

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doesn’t own the property where she/he decides to create a bakery) and the depreciation on the bakery equipment or the lease costs on them; two examples of variable cost are the cost of ingredients and human resources or labour.

Though salary is often regarded as part of fixed costs, but since most of the bakeries in India operate in the unorganised sector, it is more pragmatic to assume that human resource or staff or labour costs as variable costs, which can fluctuate according to the production needs.

However, if you decide to cut down your ingredient and human resource costs without discretion, you may end up lowering the quality of your products, which may get your business swept away by the harsh and biting winds of competition, to the oblivion. It is therefore advisable to allocate money for quality ingredients and workers before starting the bakery operations, for in bakery business, creativity and ingredients play crucial roles in success.

One may curtail their cost by curtailing their quantity and numbers, depending upon the production needs, but it is not advisable to curtail on their quality, especially in these times when the consumers for bakery products are getting evolved by the day. Overall, a prudent calculation of day-to-day costs of running a start-up and stand-alone bakery operations can help the entrepreneur to plan her/his would be revenue, pricing and profits better.

The Right Pricing The pricing of your bakery products would depend upon your cost of operations, but

should also depend on the pricing of the products of your competitors nearby. If you are charging markedly higher for your bakery products than your neighbourhood competitor, even though your products are markedly better than his, there is every chance that his regular consumers would be reluctant to switch from him towards you.

And new consumers would also be tempted to get attracted to your competitor’s products only.

However, both these setbacks for you would happen only if your competitor too produces reasonable quality products. If he produces absolute trash then of course, his consumers and new consumers may be attracted towards your baked products even at lieu of a much higher price, but then you cannot always rely on your competitor’s incompetence to start your business.

It is always better therefore to price your products judiciously, while taking into account of not only your cost of production, but also the prevailing price range of your competition nearby. It is because you need to cover your costs and make a healthy profit, but first of all you need your products to be sold.

Minimise Waste, Maximise Fresh However, you can promote those baked products where there is better profit margin over those products of yours where the profit margin is comparatively lower.

Display the products where profit margin is higher in a much more attractive way than other items where the profit margin is lower. As a start-up entrepreneur/baker/ you also need to keep a close watch on the items which you sell the most and also

Oct-Nov ’12

O P E R A T I O N S

BAKERY REVIEW the least in your bakery, and adjust your inventory accordingly to minimise waste.

Waste is a great waste of scarce money for the start-up operations.

It is also advisable to display fresh baked goods as this would help shape the first impression of your consumers and potential consumers. The aroma from a freshly baked bread or cake can make a potential consumer into a real one within no time. And in business, like in other facets of life, often first impression becomes a lasting impression, though definitely not the last impression.

Promotion and Innovation It is intelligent for start-up bakeries to offer free samples of their prized products (the products which the entrepreneurs think are expected to be sure shot winners in their consumers’ tastes) in order to garner more consumers. However, the free samples should be small enough to induce the taste and not satiate it, so that interest over the product gets ignited.

In this age, innovation is becoming the key to unlocking the doors to success, and this is more true for the bakery business, where creativity is always held at premium.

Therefore, as the owner of a new bakery you should give particular attention to make your products stand out from the crowd. Innovation can be in terms of ingredients and/or presentation.

If your bakery is located in a reasonably well-off locality of a big city, it would do good if you venture into the domain of designer desserts, which are gaining much popularity in the upwardly mobile metropolitan India. To simulate the ideas or fascination of your clientele into tailor-made or custom-designed cakes and chocolates for them during birthdays and other festivities can help you garner welcome revenues. And you would pleasantly see that if you give something different in terms of look that tastes great too, people are not minding some extra costs.

However, this trend of designer desserts has not caught on in the small cities and towns of India as yet, but even if you are a bakery owner in a small town you can make a beginning in this direction, provided you do not increase the price of your designer products too much in your price-sensitive society.

Another way of attracting the upwardly mobile and well-heeled crowd

Oct-Nov ’12

is by presenting healthy bakery in these health conscious times. Sugarless cakes and chocolates, and egg less and vegan cakes teeming with fruits and dry fruits can have good market, as would multigrain breads, and pastries with fruit toppings and less cream. Here also however, a point of caution is needed.

The bakeries presenting health conscious products are more likely to be appreciated in upper middle class and affluent localities for there only the price for these healthy products are likely to be accepted.

In middle class and lower income group areas also healthy bakery products could be marketed, but only if they are served with moderate price tags, which of course entails lesser profit margins.

Suitable Ambience Of course, innovation should not only be extended to products, but can also be extended to ambience and décor too. If your bakery is located in an upwardly mobile or posh area of a metropolitan city, the ambience and décor should be sleek and somewhat unique, and you need to pay some good amount of money (if it is a loan, its interest would add up to your fixed cost expenses) or invest some quality imagination to achieve this.

You may need both.

However, if your bakery is located in a traditional middle-class area and if you intend to target the consumers with moderate means and old-fashioned tastes, it is advisable not be too funky with your ambience and décor; it may prove to be counterproductive and your would be consumers would be reluctant to come to you by perceiving you to be too costly or high-end. In that case it is better if you keep your bakery’s ambience and décor simple and straightforward; however innovativeness in products (without hurting the religious sentiments) and healthy bakery options would be appreciated in conservative middle-class areas too, provided if you can keep their price from going berserk.

Themed Products Of course, it is better if you position your bakery outlet as a one-stop solution for the need of baked goods among your consumers and potential consumers.

The product range on display should be comprehensive and must include scrumptious Indian snacks too, besides the

cakes, biscuits, breads, muffins, chocolates, pastries, etc.

However, at the same time, it is also a clever move to update the menu frequently so as to not let the boredom set in among your consumers and potential consumers.

This would also facilitate your bakery to stand apart from the competition.

Also let the seasonal elements reflect in your offerings, which will help build expectations for your seasonal products in the next season.

Besides that, keeping a theme corresponding with various celebratory occasions and producing a specially designed bakery product according to that theme can also be an exciting proposition for the consumers and potential consumers. For example, rose shaped cakes carrying the theme of love during Valentine’s Day, or decorative candle shaped pastries during Diwali, carrying the theme of enlightenment can attract many new-age clientele to your bakery.

Work Culture As a start-up, you cannot afford to lose quality production time due to dissatisfied, lazy and inattentive staff.

Ensure that your staff remains satisfied and also ensure that you keep only those employees who besides having requisite professional expertise and the eagerness to innovate are also eager to learn and please their guests. This will help you to get repeat customers. And of course, attention to housekeeping should also be given to maintain a spic and span bakery, embodying good hygiene. This would also attract repeat consumers.

It is not to say that taking account of all these factors will surely make your bakery business a success, but their adherence would definitely facilitate the success of your bakery business endeavour. These above-mentioned aspects are not only important for a start-up stand-alone bakery beginning its operations with limited funds, but also for a retail bakery chain operating in glitzy malls, or a bakery selling high-end products in the cosy and secluded marketing environment of five-star hotels, with its guests being predominantly moneyed people staying or frequenting in five-star properties.

But for stand-alone bakeries adherence to these factors is all the more crucial for survival, especially in their nascent stage of operations. 

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P R O D U C T

P R E V I E W

Rotary Convection Oven

East India Manufacture & Trading Company is a leading company, engaged in the manufacturing of a comprehensive range of bakery equipments. The company employs a lot of senior engineers and skilled workers. One of its products is the Rotary Convection Oven, which is a key equipment for food production line, especially suitable for high-quality food. Presently, it is perhaps the most advanced baking equipment in domestic market. It adopts diesel, natural gas and electricity as heating fuel. Both of its interior and exterior are made of stainless steel and are clean and hygienic. The equipment adopts hot air convection and hot air circulation, together with trolley to move slowly and automatically.

By this way, the heating becomes even for each part and the temperature becomes standard for food. Through proper temperature, the food is aged evenly, and becomes delicious.

East India Manufacture & Trading Company nasirali@eastindiamanufacture.com

Royal Products

Royal Equipment Co. is one of the leading manufacturers of an impressive range of kitchen equipments since many years. It employs the latest technologies.

The company has a range of userfriendly and innovative commercial kitchen equipments. The company manufactures various types of cooking range, refrigeration equipments, exhaust systems and many other kitchen utility products. Royal Equipment Co. can be described as a one-stop solution for all your commercial kitchen needs.

The company’s factory is fully equipped with comprehensive range of modern design and production facilities, based on latest techniques with quality checks at each stage of production, which leads to impeccable standards. At Royal Equipment Co. each product is inspected individually before installation and dispatching.

The company also has various products suited for the bakery industry. Some of the products of the company which have applications in the bakery industry are Three Deck, Dough Mixer, Single Deck Pizza Oven, Salamander, Steam Corn Machine, etc.

Royal Equipment Co. royalequipments@gmail.com

BAKERY REVIEW

Petits Trésors

The origins of the Sablé date back to the 18th century in Normandy, when it was defined as ‘a much sought after type of confectionary which crumbles like a biscuit when eaten. Towards 1870, Littré included the word ‘sablé’ in his dictionary, where he defined it as ‘the name of a kind of cake from Normandy’. This Normandy speciality owes

a large part of its success to the Parisians, who visited the beaches of Normandy, and greatly enjoyed its biscuits. As a result, many bakers, throughout Normandy, created their own versions of this biscuit. Georges Lautour, a baker in Lonlay l’Abbaye (61), was forced to move away during the Second World War, and upon his return, he decided that he too would start making his own Sablé to bring back the customers he had lost during his prolonged absence. His wife, Hélène, added it to the recipe books….and the Abbey Sablé was born.

Petits Trésors is baked by kneading the creamy, butter shortbread dough in such a way as to reveal the fruit bits, and by topping the biscuit with a layer of real chocolate of just the right amount to achieve a delicious mix of flavours.

The prepartion also involves adding just the right amount of spices to tickle your taste buds, and bring out the chocolate and fruit notes.

Epicure Frozen Foods & Beverages Pvt Ltd. gauravtandon@epicure.in

Mello Margarine

Mello margarine contains the right mix of MUFA & PUFA, which are known as cholesterol fighters. It has no cholesterol and about 70 percent less saturated fat than butter. Butter generally contains excessive saturated fats that cause bad cholesterol. By substituting Mello for butter over a week’s time, one can save a whole day’s worth of saturated fat. Mello also offers nutritional benefits – a tablespoon of Mello provides 10 percent of the daily value for vitamin A, and is an important source of dietary Vitamin D & E. It also contains linoleic acid; an essential fatty acid which is vital for good health. Mello is spreadable, almost right out of the refrigerator.

Foods Fats & Fertilizers Ltd. sjj@fff.co.in

The information published in this section is as per the details furnished by the respective manufacturer/distributor.

In any case, it does not represent the views of Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

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I N T E R V I E W

BAKERY REVIEW

Being Creatively Innovative

By Sharmila Chand

Having worked with leading hotel chains of India, Rama Chandra Kumar, the Executive Pastry Chef at The Imperial, New Delhi, has the responsibilities of maintaining the impeccable standards of the bakery of the hotel.

He also worked at an international cruise liner in Italy where he not only got exposure to international cuisines as Chef De Partie, but also got an opportunity to travel to Europe, Northern Africa, Caribbean islands and many other Middle-East countries, which in turn matured him as a culinary artist.

In 2007, he came back to India and joined Shangri-La’s Eros Hotel, New Delhi as the Department Head for Bakery.

He was sent to Europe again for a specialised training in chocolate, bread and dessert making. In 2009, he joined Hilton Hotels at the Republic of Seychelles as a Pastry Chef and spent one-and-a-half fruitful years there.

He also worked with the Sheraton Bangalore for the property’s pre-opening, as a Pastry Chef. It was followed by his present tenure with The Imperial, New Delhi. The excerpts of the interview follow:

Which was the most outstanding experience of your career as a Pastry Chef?

My most outstanding and memorable experience was to be a part of the preopening team for Sheraton Bangalore.

It gave me the professional joy to understand and implement the standards from the very beginning.

What is the current trend in the Indian bakery industry?

Today the bakery industry in India is seeing a major upsurge in terms of quality and standards. The race to modernise and be at par with the French bakeries with the use of imported products is quite high in the Indian bakery market.

What is the strength of the bakery at The Imperial, New Delhi?

La Baguette at The Imperial, New Delhi is characterised by unique product offerings and home-made breads, which are not only authentic but appeal to both Indian and expat guests.

How did you become a Pastry Chef?

I think I was destined to be a Pastry Chef, since the opportunities kept coming my way and enhanced the creative aspect of mine to eventually make me what I am today.

What are your hot selling bakery items?

European bread, French mini pastries such as milly- filly, opera pastry and eclair

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are my hot selling bakery products.

Which products have great demand in bakeries these days?

Chocolate and fruit-based products are the most selling products in the Indian bakery industry, these days.

What about the health quotient?

How do you take care of that aspect?

I prefer using natural flavoured ingredients and avoid using essence and any synthetic flavoured product as they are not only harmful but also tamper the originality of the product offerings and ruin the natural flavours.

What is your favourite tool?

Palette knife with which I love to do icing on the cakes and enhance the decoration bit is my favourite equipment.

What are the major challenges a Pastry Chef/Bakery Chef has to face in his/her job? Please name three of them and explain The three important challenges that the Pastry Chef/Bakery Chef do tackle in his/her job are the challenges pertaining to having the desired ingredients, acquiring the right machinery, and getting and retaining the skilled associates.

The ingredients play a major role in making a fine patisserie offering.

Inappropriate supply and demand can create hindrance in getting the desired ingredient on time.

Similarly, high-tech machinery and equipments are essential for designing and decorating cakes and other bakery items. Absence of the same may affect the final look and making of the product.

Dearth of skilled associates is usually a key factor in hospitality sector, and bakery industry is no exception to this trait. So the challenge is to retain and motivate skilled associates.

What do you like about your job?

I like the fact that my job is very creative and innovative at every stage.

What you don’t like about your job?

I don’t like to replicate the products.

The creativity lies in making unique offerings each day, which are not only delectable but appeal to the eye as well.

What is your strength as a Bakery Chef?

My strength as a Bakery Chef lies in making authentic European breads and classic European desserts.

What are you passionate about besides baking?

I love travelling, indulging in sports, specially scuba diving, during my spare time.

What are your dreams?

I desire to be a Michelin Star Chef. I dream of becoming one of the top known Chefs in the world. I also have the dream of penning a book on confectionery.

Oct-Nov ’12

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Oct-Nov ’12

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